Former Aston Villa frontman Gabriel Agbonlahor thinks that Arsenal target Ruben Neves isn't an improvement on departing midfielder Granit Xhaka.
The Swiss midfielder joined the Gunners in the summer of 2016 from Bundesliga side Borussia Monchengladbach for £34million, a hefty fee considering N'golo Kante joined Chelsea for less than that the same transfer window.
Xhaka has divided opinion within the Arsenal fanbase throughout his five seasons at the Emirates, often following brilliant passing performances with high-profile costly errors at the back.
Since the 28-year-old arrived in North London, the Gunners have failed to qualify for the Champions League, something they had achieved in each of the previous 20 years.
Xhaka's time in England appears to be coming to an end, with the combative midfielder reportedly close to joining Jose Mourinho's Roma side.
His impending departure has resulted in Arsenal being linked with Wolves' midfield anchor Ruben Neves, a signing that Agbonlahor thinks would be a sideways step for the Gunners.
“That’s just going sideways," Agbonlahor told Football Insider.
“Xhaka and Neves for me are similar players. Both can score screamers, both can score free-kicks but can’t really get around the pitch. They can’t really get the ball back.
“For me, Neves is not the type of player Arsenal need and I think Arsenal fans would agree. Any Arsenal fan I speak to or see is devastated that Buendia chose Villa.
“They’d rather the money spent on an attacking threat. They need to maybe bring in somebody stronger to play alongside Partey in midfield.
“Neves is not the sort of player they need.”
Neves will play a part in Portugal's Euro 2020 campaign which gets underway on Tuesday when they face Hungary in Budapest.
